Application of TiO ₂ with different structures in solar cells

Abstract

The application of TiO 2 -based devices is mainly dependent on their crystalline structure, morphology, size, and exposed facets. Two kinds of TiO 2 with different structures, namely TiO 2 pompons and TiO 2 nanotubes, have been prepared by the hydrothermal method. TiO 2 with different structures is characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analysis. Solar cells based on poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and TiO 2 with different structures are fabricated. In the device ITO/TiO 2 /P3HT/Au, the P3HT is designed to act as the electron donor, and TiO 2 pompons and TiO 2 nanotubes act as the electron acceptor. The effects of the TiO 2 structure on the performance of hybrid heterojunction solar cells are investigated. The device with TiO 2 pompons has an open circuit voltage (Voc) of 0.51 V, a short circuit current (Jsc) of 0.21 mA/cm 2 , and a fill factor (FF) of 28.3%. Another device with TiO 2 nanotubes has a Voc of 0.5 V, Jsc of 0.27 mA/cm 2 , and FF of 28.4%. The results indicate that the TiO 2 nanotubes with a unidimensional structure have better carrier transport and light absorption properties than TiO 2 pompons. Consequently, the solar cell based on TiO 2 nanotubes has a better performance.

Incorporating poly(3-hexyl thiophene) into orthogonally aligned cylindrical nanopores of titania for optoelectronics

“…One creative strategy to get around the phase segregation problem is to use templated inorganic hosts with nanoscale dimensions and backfill these with conjugated polymers. This approach has been used by many researchers using TiO 2 -P3HT bulk heterojunctions with different morphologies of titania including nanotubes [7][8][9][10][11][12], nanoparticles [13], nanorods [13][14][15][16][17][18][19], pompons [8], and spherical nanoparticles [20]. All of these morphologies have dimensions of the range of nm which is significantly higher than the diffusion length for P3HT (~5-20 nm [21][22][23]).…”

Downconversion Materials for Perovskite Solar Cells

“…[ 140 ] In solar cells, TiO 2 is commonly used as an ETL in organic photovoltaics as well as PSCs. [ 141 ] Recently, lanthanides modified with TiO 2 were reported for their use in different applications. Zeng et al [ 142 ] coated Eu with TiO 2 , and the concentration of Eu 3+ influences the energy transfer between Eu and TiO 2 .…”

Rutile‐to‐anatase reverse phase transformation in nano titania with morphological changes in a hydrothermal approach

“…light, it exhibits extraordinary photocatalytic properties. 23 Anatase and rutile TiO 2 have been exploited extensively for their photocatalytic properties in a range of application areas including bactericidal activity, 24 splitting water for hydrogen production, 25 solar cells, 26 water purification, 27 decomposition of toxic organic compounds, 28 and selfcleaning coatings. 29 According to experiments, the phase transformation processes among anatase, brookite, and rutile in the air are influenced by their size.…”